I want to buy a new digital camera. The biggest problem I have with my current camera (a Canon Powershot A400) is that it has a painfully long delay between taking pictures. I think this is something different from "shutter lag" which is important to me but not as important as the delay between pictures.
I would really like to see a website that gave these figures for every camera out there. Is this something that reviewers keep track of? Where can I see a website that will compare these figures. It's called Cycle time. Here's an example:
http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/S3... www.dpreview.com The feature you refer to is the camera's ability to write to the memory card. It can't be quoted in hard and fast terms because there are variables beyond the manufacturer's control such as the memory card's write speed etc..
Most newer cameras now have a memory buffer allowing them to keep shooting even when the last shot has not been fully written to the memory card. Obviously the larger that buffer, the better for you. Nobody gives the precise size of the buffer but you can get an idea by looking at the camera's burst rate. For example typically they will take 3 frames per second (fps) for up to 9 shots then say slow down to one per second. This occurs when the buffer is full. Look at this spec for each camera on your shopping list and compare. Some might do say 40 shots at 3 per second, but only record the final 3. This can be useful but it just means that the camera is dumping shots from the buffer in real time and can only hold 3.
The problem you refer to though is one of the areas that manufacturer's have been working on a lot recently. So you will likely find that none of the current generation of cameras will be as bad as your old one. If any of your friends have new cameras, ask for a play and see what you think. Putting better electronics in cameras is relatively cheap for the manufacturer. Making better bodies with more optical zoom is expensive so you are more likely to end up with better electronics in a cheaper camera than say better zoom or a more rugged camera.
For an example look at Nikon Digital SLRs. The new D40 for $580US has the same electronics as the $1000 D80 before it, and the $1800 D200 before that. A lot of electronics but some of the mechanical features are missing. This is typical of current camera development.
Hope this helps. All the best with your new purchase. It sounds like you're interested in the "continuous drive" mode, where you hold the button down and the camera takes pictures one after another until you stop pressing the button.
If you look at www.dpreview.com, the reviewer will often compare how long it takes to perform various tasks. In the big review for the reviewed cameras, you should look at the page called "Timings and Sizes". You can also do a side-by-side comparison of cameras and look at the basic information about the continuous drive speed.
As mentioned above, there is a small variable with the write speed of the card but while the card can slow things down, it won't make a slow camera fast. Digital SLR's have virtually no shutter lag OR cycle time between pictures at all, so consider one for your next purchase.
If you pre-focus by pressing the shutter button half-way down while aiming at your subject - or where you anticipate your subject will be when you want to take the picture - it will help considerably. You can set your camera in "Sport" mode or "Scenery" and this will minimize the lag. If you do not use the flash, it will help. If you turn off "face detection," it will help. If you turn off the LCD monitor and use the viewfinder only, it will help.
Some point and shoot cameras are better than others. I have a Canon Powershot SD900 that seems quite fast to me. If you go to http://www.dpreview.com and read the reviews (once they are available for the cameras you are considering), you can go to the page called "Performance" and see exactly what the tested shutter lag is, as well as several other performace benchmarks, including "shot-to-shot," which you are asking about. Finding this information here is tedious, but accurate.
Here's a link showing a chart of various cameras and their shutter lag as well as the time it takes to shoot five frames, which seems to be what you are most interested in:
http://www.cameras.co.uk/html/shutter-la... |
